The filesystem is repartitioned to allow for 3.2+ anything below 3.2 is no longer possible as we don’t have the old reformat tool. There is no point going to 3.2 when 3.3 is the same but newer and 3.4 is even newer
Many thanks for the explanation. I would be OK with this 3.3 but how do I know it works like my current 3.0 
I have S-MAX 2016 model with SYNC 3.0 18025 NAV EU. Do you think there may be any problems for example with clima control ? I have this working on 3.0 but I’ve read somewhere some people had problems with this but I’m not sure if they were clima enabled before. Just out of my curiosity, why this old reformat tool is not available now ? Thanks for your time.
worse case you have to re-enable it with ForScan, most of the time it’s fine but not always, no guarantees, not a big issue in my opinion.
For what it’s worth, I have updated my car from SYNC 3.0 to 3.4 and everything went fine for me. My climate controls remained in tact
it’s never been available, the reformat tool is leaked frorm internal ford employees, without this none of this would be possible on pre 3.2 units, we don’t have their first version of the reformat tool and therefore can’t format it to pre 3.2 mode.
same for me on both my cars i’ve had since i started this process.
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Thanks guys, so would you recommend it over 3.0 in general ? What cars and model year do you have if I may ask ? I read somewhere that some cars before 2017 had some troubles with USB hub and SYNC was displaying some errors. Hope it’s not my case but I don’t think so since my car support CarPlay but who knows
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I’ve got a 2018 fusion that came with 3.0 from the factory. If your car already supports CarPlay then I would say that the hub is good for 3.4. If you update and you get a USB hub error then you can simply order the new hub from Ford (its fairly cheap in NA) and swap it out in a matter of minutes. For me I personally really like the new UI in 3.4 and overall the system does feel quite a bit snappier as well. I also did the upgrade to update my maps to the latest version.
Hub is about $50 US on Ebay.
Sync 3.4.20136 works great in my 2015 F150 Platinum. Everything works fine.
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Many thanks. My hub is 2 port without SD card slot with 12V socket. Hope it will be fine, in worst case I can buy a new one as you’ve suggested. My maps are F4 so quiet old so I guess it’s worth only because of this.
So once again thanks for your help and my last question to this topic. If anything screw up badly during update process, or I don’t like this version… Would Ford authorized service be able to flash it back to 3.0 ?
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Perfect, thanks. Don’t you have that USB media bug or what is it when you listen to USB, then turn off radio and when it starts it’s playing from USB but shows AM and if you press next it switch to radio? Read some users reported this issue.
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Most of the time if something goes wrong you can fix the error yourself relatively easily. There’s a low chance of you permanently bricking your unit. I’m not sure what Ford would do if you brought it to them but I’m assuming they would charge quite a bit to re-flash it.
Just be sure to follow the instructions on the website/downloader application closely and you should be fine.
If you do not want the USB media playback issue then stick with 3.4 versions prior to 20021.
Would Ford authorized service be able to flash it back to 3.0 ?
I’ll go out on a limb and say absolutely not.
I have not experienced the “media bug” issue with 3.4.20136, but it is documented that it exists, Also in 3.4.20021. The bug is not in 3.4.19274 though. I would consider that one the most stable of the recent releases.
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Agreed that 3.4.19274 seems to have the least issues.
Thanks guys, I feel more relaxed now It’s strange that some people experience this bug while others don’t. I think I will flash with newest version (already prepare an USB) and if the bug is present will go back to 19724. Hope there will be a new release soon with this fixed.
Don’t do this to me. So 20136 or 19274 ? And please, it’s enough to turn only the ignition on without starting an engine? I don’t really want to start engine during update process. It’s OK ?
If you want the most stable build then go for 19274. If you don’t really care about the possibility of having the USB bug then go for 20136. As for leaving the car running I would highly recommend it just so that your car doesn’t shut off power to the APIM during the update (which would cause it to fail).
Try using a USB 3 drive if you want the installation to go faster. That’s what I did and it saved about 10-15 minutes compared to a USB 2 drive.
I would just go to 3.4.19274 and see how you like it. If you want to stay with the older look and feel, then 3.3.19052 would be the most stable for that.
I use a battery charger with the truck in ACC mode. Just turn off the fans and stuff so you are kind to your charger. If you don’t have a charger, run the vehicle, or go for a drive. Just be sure that it doesn’t shut down in 30 minutes, or until the update is done.